Salient. An organ of student opinion at Victoria College Wellington, N.Z. Vol. 2, No. 5 April 19, 1939

Libraries

Libraries.

In addition to the 150-200 shops selling popular magazines there must be upwards of 50 profit-seeking lending libraries, counting branches. Perhaps there are more. Some reader may be interested enough to count them to find out more definitely. These libraries stock mainly contemporary fiction. It is not the best fiction nor is it the, worst. It is mediocre fiction, based on one or both of two staple elements, sex and violence, romance and detection. To get profits the policy of the libraries is to buy cheaply, to limit the range to books that change hands quickly, and to keep such information about good books as is given in the better periodicals away from their subscribers. The effect is to decrease the sales of the good books, lower the level at which the majority of people read, and make them less fit to read and understand more serious books dealing realistically or imaginatively with the lives of men.